Unemployment drops, slightly

The statistics service, in a report, said that the number of unemployed people totaled 1,216,870 in April, with the unemployment rate among young people remaining at very high levels (53.2 pct) and in the most productive age group of 25-34 years at 32.9 pct.

The report showed that unemployment grew in three out of seven decentralized regions in April. The number of unemployed people fell by 78,759 in April compared with the same month last year (a decline of 6.1 pct) and by 11,848 compared with March (a decline of 1.0 pct).

The number of employed people totaled 3,543,651 in April, up 49,283 from April 2014 (+1.4 pct) and by 16,834 compared with March (+0.5 pct). The economically non active population totaled 3,334,628 in April, down 21,089 from April 2014 and down 9,103 from March.

The unemployment rate among women was 29.8 pct in April, from 24.2 pct in April 2014, while among men the unemployment rate was 22.2 pct and 24.2 pct, respectively.

The unemployment rate in the 15-24 age group fell to 53.2 pct in April from 55.4 pct last year, in the 25-34 age group it fell to 32.9 pct from 35.4 pct, in the 35-44 age group it fell to 22 pct from 23.9 pct, in the 45-54 age group it rose to 21.2 pct from 20.4 pct, in the 55-64 age group it was unchanged at 17.8 pct and in the 65-74 age group it fell to 11.1 pct from 12.4 pct.

Epirus-Western Macedonia (26.4 pct from 28.5 pct) recorded the highest unemployment rate among the country's regions, followed by Thessaly-Central Greece (26.4 pct from 25.9 pct), Attica (26.4 pct from 28.6 pct), Peloponnese-Western Greece-Ionian Islands (26.1 pct from 25.9 pct), Macedonia-Thrace (25.8 pct from 28.2 pct), Crete (24.2 pct from 23.7 pct) and Aegean (21.6 pct from 23.4 pct).